I'm sure some folks will find this interesting...
Haven't said a great deal about my personal life here at tweb... and that will continue. But here's a bit more than usual.
Life for me has been ... rough ... in some ways, for many years. Folks will probably mostly remember me as something of a science junkie... I have a bit of background, got a lot of interest, hold my own reasonably well in technical discussions. That will also continue, I hope.
I used to be an academic, though I did not really shine to be honest. I took a voluntary redundancy many years ago, at a time when student numbers crashed and the Uni faculty where I worked shed most of their staff. After that, I floundered. It was not a great time to find a new comparable position. For many years I did a range of things in a kind of scrappy casual way, enough to keep my head above water (just). I made an attempt to take up secondary teaching (which I did mention at the old theologyweb some years ago) but that didn't work out. I love tutoring; but managing a classroom was totally different from managing a lecture hall, and I didn't do it well or feel good about it.
The ultimate resolution for me has been a radically new direction. I completed my training last year, and for this year I have been working at my new career. I am a nursing aid, or "personal care assistant", working at an aged care facility.
Here are some aspects many friends here at theologyweb are likely to find of interest.
First I really do think at last I've broken out of the career doldrums and found a new direction that matches my interests and personality. This is the first time for years that I have been in a steady job and am feeling good about it. It isn't particularly science related or technical, but on the other hand an interest in science and the natural world is a general way of seeing things all over; it applies *everywhere* and for everything. I was never a science researcher (except in "computer science" which is IMO more properly a branch of mathematics).
Second it seems that even after thirty years as an atheist, my Christian origins continue to haunt me. I'm working for "Baptist Care". I actually had a choice between two employers; one Christian and one secular. That made pretty much no difference to my decision. My own faith (or lack thereof) wasn't an issue to my prospective employers; and my employer's faith wasn't an issue to me. It was all about the workplace and how it worked, and it just so happened that the one which tipped out the scales for me was the Baptists. Whadayaknow. A couple of people at work know I am an atheist and I'm not remotely shy about saying so if it comes up... but it doesn't come up. We talk about our clients and our practice more than anything else. So it's a big non-issue.
Third my main work is in dementia care. This is a really really interesting and challenging place to be. It could be heart breaking if you took it all too personally. But if you continue to see people as people, it's really important to help and hold people who find themselves in a frightening and confusing place; and humanity is still there. So it is also very rewarding.
Forth I turn out to be lazy. It's very nice to be in a job where I am working shifts, and when I get home... the work is finished! As an academic I didn't have clear set hours; but rather a lot of work to get done; papers, marking, course preparation, and so on and on and on. It had to get done; regardless of how long it took. Now, I come home and am tired... but I am also *finished*. The job is done until next shift. I'm finding that style of work refreshing.
Fifth this is a career that develops. For all that I finish work at the end of a shift, there's still plenty of scope for development and I'm taking that up. I'll be learning more about incontinence, about managing challenging behaviours, about medications, etc. There are a number of directions to go, though for this year I just want to build a sold basis in the foundation of personal care.
Sixth I am continuing to keep a minor involvement in other activities. Most significantly, I continue secondary tutoring... as a volunteer, working with kids from refugee backgrounds in a local high school who need a bit of extra help because English is their second language. My strong maths and science background has been very useful there. We have a really interesting group of kids to work with.. from Afghanistan, Iraq, Congo, Somalia, Ethiopia and lots more. Some of them have amazing stories, and life experience that leave me gobsmacked. Newcastle has a growing population of folks from such backgrounds, Africa in particular; and IMO it is the kids who are going to be the biggest lever in helping these families adapt to a radically new life. The kids are keen and excited, and they represent a fabulous mix of the influence from their families and from their new country; and they'll often be the bridge for their parents to get involved in all that is now available to them.
So there you go. Sylas is now professionally in a field of menial low pay and low status work.... and loving it. I did a six month course last year to get qualified, and have been working now almost three months at this new career direction.
Wish me luck, my friends! -- sylas
Haven't said a great deal about my personal life here at tweb... and that will continue. But here's a bit more than usual.
Life for me has been ... rough ... in some ways, for many years. Folks will probably mostly remember me as something of a science junkie... I have a bit of background, got a lot of interest, hold my own reasonably well in technical discussions. That will also continue, I hope.
I used to be an academic, though I did not really shine to be honest. I took a voluntary redundancy many years ago, at a time when student numbers crashed and the Uni faculty where I worked shed most of their staff. After that, I floundered. It was not a great time to find a new comparable position. For many years I did a range of things in a kind of scrappy casual way, enough to keep my head above water (just). I made an attempt to take up secondary teaching (which I did mention at the old theologyweb some years ago) but that didn't work out. I love tutoring; but managing a classroom was totally different from managing a lecture hall, and I didn't do it well or feel good about it.
The ultimate resolution for me has been a radically new direction. I completed my training last year, and for this year I have been working at my new career. I am a nursing aid, or "personal care assistant", working at an aged care facility.
Here are some aspects many friends here at theologyweb are likely to find of interest.
First I really do think at last I've broken out of the career doldrums and found a new direction that matches my interests and personality. This is the first time for years that I have been in a steady job and am feeling good about it. It isn't particularly science related or technical, but on the other hand an interest in science and the natural world is a general way of seeing things all over; it applies *everywhere* and for everything. I was never a science researcher (except in "computer science" which is IMO more properly a branch of mathematics).
Second it seems that even after thirty years as an atheist, my Christian origins continue to haunt me. I'm working for "Baptist Care". I actually had a choice between two employers; one Christian and one secular. That made pretty much no difference to my decision. My own faith (or lack thereof) wasn't an issue to my prospective employers; and my employer's faith wasn't an issue to me. It was all about the workplace and how it worked, and it just so happened that the one which tipped out the scales for me was the Baptists. Whadayaknow. A couple of people at work know I am an atheist and I'm not remotely shy about saying so if it comes up... but it doesn't come up. We talk about our clients and our practice more than anything else. So it's a big non-issue.
Third my main work is in dementia care. This is a really really interesting and challenging place to be. It could be heart breaking if you took it all too personally. But if you continue to see people as people, it's really important to help and hold people who find themselves in a frightening and confusing place; and humanity is still there. So it is also very rewarding.
Forth I turn out to be lazy. It's very nice to be in a job where I am working shifts, and when I get home... the work is finished! As an academic I didn't have clear set hours; but rather a lot of work to get done; papers, marking, course preparation, and so on and on and on. It had to get done; regardless of how long it took. Now, I come home and am tired... but I am also *finished*. The job is done until next shift. I'm finding that style of work refreshing.
Fifth this is a career that develops. For all that I finish work at the end of a shift, there's still plenty of scope for development and I'm taking that up. I'll be learning more about incontinence, about managing challenging behaviours, about medications, etc. There are a number of directions to go, though for this year I just want to build a sold basis in the foundation of personal care.
Sixth I am continuing to keep a minor involvement in other activities. Most significantly, I continue secondary tutoring... as a volunteer, working with kids from refugee backgrounds in a local high school who need a bit of extra help because English is their second language. My strong maths and science background has been very useful there. We have a really interesting group of kids to work with.. from Afghanistan, Iraq, Congo, Somalia, Ethiopia and lots more. Some of them have amazing stories, and life experience that leave me gobsmacked. Newcastle has a growing population of folks from such backgrounds, Africa in particular; and IMO it is the kids who are going to be the biggest lever in helping these families adapt to a radically new life. The kids are keen and excited, and they represent a fabulous mix of the influence from their families and from their new country; and they'll often be the bridge for their parents to get involved in all that is now available to them.
So there you go. Sylas is now professionally in a field of menial low pay and low status work.... and loving it. I did a six month course last year to get qualified, and have been working now almost three months at this new career direction.
Wish me luck, my friends! -- sylas
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